The regulator seeks cooperation from ministers concerned in implementing mandatory group insurance in all industrial units pursuant upon the Bangladesh Labour Law, as the issue comes to the fore following recent tragedies.
The Insurance Develop-ment and Regulatory Aut-hority (IDRA) recently req-uested that the ministry of labour holds a high-level stakeholder meeting to devise strategies for implementing the mandatory group insurance.
To this end, the IDRA sent a letter to the financial institutions division recently to pursue the labour ministry to open the discussion immediately.
The issue of group insurance came to light after a recent deadly fire incident at a factory in Narayanganj district which claimed over 50 lives and injured many.
Under a provision of the labour law the owners of factories and industrial units where 100 or more permanent workers are employed must buy group insurance for them.
IDRA chairman Dr M Mosharraf Hossain in the letter wrote group insurance has not been introduced in most factories and industrial units.
He also wrote that, for the absence of group insurance, interests of workers have not been protected.
"The main goal of group insurance is to provide financial security to workers' health risk," he wrote.
It also aims to bring family members of workers under financial safeguards in case of their death.
Mr Hossain wrote that in case of any incident majority of liabilities of the factory owners can be borne by life-insurance companies if there is a group insurance for workers.
He noted that, in recent times, deaths and wounds of a significant number of workers from fire and other incidents tarnished image of the country globally.
Moreover, the government has to provide financial succour to the workers from the exchequer.
"If group insurance is introduced in factories, both the owner and workers will be beneficial from the scheme," he writes.
Mr Hossain added that the premium and proceeds of mandatory group insurance enjoy waiver from income tax as a measure to encourage the factory owners to buy the insurance scheme for workers.
An official at the financial institutions division told the FE despite group insurance being made mandatory under the labour law, majority of the factory owners did not comply with the provision.
He said the division would soon write to the labour ministry requesting it to hold stakeholder consultation to find ways for implementation of mandatory group insurance in the factories and industrial units.
